


I can't imagine a world with you gone

by eddiefuckinkaspbrak



Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King, Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Eddie Kaspbrak Loves Richie Tozier, Eddie Kaspbrak is a badass, Heartbreak, Loss, Love, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Richie Tozier Loves Eddie Kaspbrak, Richie Tozier is a Badass, Separations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-21
Updated: 2019-12-21
Packaged: 2021-02-25 20:49:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,538
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21891691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eddiefuckinkaspbrak/pseuds/eddiefuckinkaspbrak
Summary: two lives, together and then apart, at the end of the world.
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Comments: 14
Kudos: 166





	I can't imagine a world with you gone

**Author's Note:**

> my secret Santa gift for @kaygivemeacall

“For fuck sake, we really need to stop just helping anyone we see. What if he wakes up and tries to kill us huh? What then? I really don’t want to have to kill any more alive people, you know this!”

“Shh, he’s waking up!”

With a groan, Richie opened his eyes, sight blurry thanks to the lack of his glasses. His whole body ached from head to toe, but the most prominent pain was coming from his head. Above him, two blurry figures stared down at him, and even without his glasses, he knew that neither of them were the person he wanted to see. Panic surged through him and Richie sat up, head whipping from side to side. 

“Hey, easy.” One of the blurry figures hushed, a girl with bright red hair. “You hit your head pretty hard, so quit moving it around. It might make it worse.”

Richie stopped moving, the pain in his head heightening as the girl explained his injury. “Eddie,” he mumbled, biting his lip as he tried to get to his feet. He had to find Eddie, he had to make sure he was okay. “Where is he? Where’s Eddie?”

One second his vision was blurry and the next his sight came back to him as the boy slid his crooked glasses back onto his face. He took that chance to get a better look at the two of them. They looked as though they had been through hell and back, which Richie could quite believe given the circumstances of the world. The boy had a frown on his face, tilting his head, “Who’s Eddie?”

“Eddie,” Richie gasped, that feeling of panic back in his chest. He looked around, behind the two people but all he could see for miles was trees and woodland. “Eddie he- he’s my fiancé,” he whispered. “We fuck...have you seen him?” They hadn’t been separated for long, Richie knew that. Eddie couldn’t have been fair away. These people  _ must _ have seen him. 

The girl shook her head, “I’m sorry we- we only came across you. You were unconscious but breathing and we’re not the kind of people to leave breathing people behind. Not anymore.” She knelt down and placed a hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry, I really am, but we need to get going. We can’t stay in one place for long.”

Richie shook his head again, slower this time in care of his head injury. “I’m not leaving without Eddie. No way. I’m sorry. Go ahead, you can go. I have to find him though. I have to.” He pushed himself off of the tree and into a standing position. After only a few steps though, he stumbled and lost his balance, being caught by the boy who sat him back down, an unimpressed look on his face. 

“Are you fucking stupid?” The boy asked, crossing his arms. “You do realise that we’re in the middle of an apocalypse here? This isn’t a simple game of someone being missing! I’m not going to sugar coat it for you but your fiancé? He’s probably dead. One of those walkers by now and unless you want to be one of them too, then I suggest you pull your head out of your ass and start thinking rationally.” He looked at the girl. “I saved his ass once, but if he’s going to come with us, he needs to fend for himself. He isn’t some damsel.”

The girl blinked and Richie sunk back against the tree, tears welling into his eyes at the words the boy had basically screamed. A silence washed over the trio before she sat down next to Richie, placing a hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry about that,” she whispered softly and held out her hand. “I’m Beverly, but my friends call me Bev, and grumpy nuts over there is Stan.”

Beverly and Stan. Somehow, Richie believed that the names fit them too perfectly. He wiped his eyes and turned his head to face Beverly. “I have to make sure that Eddie isn’t dead,” he whispered. “Please? We- we were just down by the road, the one with all the cars. Just- please let me take a look?”

The two of them, Bev and Stan, looked at one another before Stan nodded. “Alright, let’s go to the road and take a look.” She leaned down to help Richie wrap an arm around her shoulder, hauling him to his feet. Stan looked down at the compass in his hand before going to Richie’s other side, pointing in the direction of the road. 

It didn’t take them long, which made Richie’s heart lurch. It meant that they weren’t far from where he had separated from Eddie. As they stepped out of the woods and onto the grass by the road, Richie started frantically looking back and forth, looking for his fiancé. 

“Come on, Eds. Where are you,” Richie muttered, letting go of Bev and Stan, stumbling towards the empty cars that were littering the road. He felt Stan move towards him, but Bev held him back, allowing Richie to go search for the love of his life. Yet, no matter how hard he looked, and how much he prayed, Eddie was nowhere in sight. “Eds!”

His yell echoed through the woods and down the empty road, which caused Stan to cover a hand over his mouth, stopping Richie from letting out another cry, this time one of anguish as he desperately wanted to scream Eddie’s name, scream so loud that he might hear him, wherever he is. 

The screaming, muffled by Stan’s hand, soon turned to sobs and the hand left his mouth, allowing Richie to sink to the floor and scream into the grass. He screamed until his lungs burned and his throat was raw. Bev and Stan let him, standing off to the side. He smashed the grass with his fists, tears turning into heavy heaving until there were no more tears left to cry and he was nothing more than an empty shell.

Eddie was gone, dead probably. A part of the walking dead that had taken over their world. He didn’t even get to say goodbye. One minute Eddie was there, telling him to run, and the next he was alone and Eddie was gone. He was never going to see him again, never going to see his beautiful smile and hearty giggle. 

Richie felt the bile rise in his stomach and he tilted his head to the side, throwing up the contents of his stomach all over the side of the road. He felt Beverly come to his side, pushing his hair out of his face, something that Eddie always did when Richie was being sick. 

“Hey, it’s going to be okay,” Bev whispered, grabbing a tissue out of her bag and wiped his mouth of the excess vomit. “Listen, I know...I know this sucks. I know, but we need to keep going if we want to live. I don’t want to leave you behind to be devoured by walkers, because that’s what’s going to happen.”

Richie looked up, and with one final look around the empty road, he nodded his head. 

* * * * *

_ “Richie, where are we going?” Eddie asked, a grin on his lips as Richie lead him down the street, their hands laced together. He had just experienced one of the worst days of his life, and his original plan when he got home was to go for a bath and go to sleep. Richie, on the other hand, had other plans.  _

_ Instead of answering, Richie just winked and continued to pull him down the street, stopping outside of a nice restaurant that Eddie recognised straight away. It was a place he had told Richie about a few weeks back, and how he really wanted to try it out. It was expensive though, and they were young. They didn’t have the funds to be having fancy dinners in expensive restaurants.  _

_ “I know that our anniversary isn’t until Wednesday, but we are working all week so I thought we would celebrate it now,” Richie ran a hand over the back of his neck, biting his lip nervously. “Stupid idea?” _

_ Eddie shook his head, a smile on his lips as he stepped forward, wrapping his arms around Richie’s neck. He pushed up on his toes and pressed their lips together in a soft kiss, “Nah, I think it’s romantic of you,” he smirked. “Though are you sure we can afford this?” _

_ Looking up at the restaurant, Richie shrugged a little, wrapping his arms around Eddie’s waist to pull him closer. “Come on, Eds. It’s our anniversary. I think that we can splurge a little, don’t you?” He ran his hands up and down Eddie’s back, a move that was meant to calm him down at first, but soon turned into an action of affection. “Shall we?” _

_ “Alright,” Eddie smiled, pulling back and lacing their fingers together, squeezing them as they walked into the restaurant. The waitress by the entrance smiled at them, and Richie gave her his name before they were led to a table in a quieter section of the dining hall. Eddie raised an eyebrow, knowing that it must have cost Richie a little more to reserve this particular table, but Richie only raised his eyebrow back in response, daring Eddie to say something.  _

_ Richie hooked their ankles together under the table and reached for Eddie’s hand, holding it over the table and running his thumb over his knuckles. “Are you happy, Eds?” He asked, taking Eddie off guard and he tilted his head to the side. “I mean, I don’t mean with me. I just- are you happy? With this? With your job and stuff?” _

_ Eddie had no idea how Richie knew that he was miserable in his job, and with his life outside of Richie. He had no idea, because Eddie had never told him. He didn’t want to burden Richie with his problems outside of their relationship as he also knew Richie and his mother...practically hated one another. He took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair. “Are you psychic or something?” _

_ “Huh?” Richie asked, tilting his head to the side. “Eds, what are you talking about?” _

_ Shaking his head, Eddie let out a soft laugh, “You asked me if I was happy...with my life outside of us. You never ask me that, not unless you know what my answer is going to be.” He sighed. “I had a fight with my mother, earlier. Just before you got home.” _

_ Richie’s eyes narrowed at the mere mention of his mother, and he squeezed Eddie’s hand tighter. He was just about to ask what she said, when the waitress arrived to take their order. Richie smiled and placed both his food and drink order, before Eddie ordered his own. Once she had gone, Richie turned his attention back to Eddie, who just sat there, waiting for him to talk. “What did she say to you, Eds?” _

_ “Apparently, there is a girl at the church in Derry. Her name is Myra and she is, in my mother’s eyes, my perfect match.” Eddie answered and let out another deep sigh. “I listened to her talk shit about you for an hour before I snapped and told her to shut the fuck up. She sounded shocked that I wasn’t being her good little boy and I just went off on one. I told her that I hated her, and how she makes me feel. I told her that I loved you and that no matter how many women she tries to set me up with, it will never change that I’m gay and in love with a man she absolutely hates.” He paused as the waitress arrived with their drinks and when she left once more, he squeezed Richie’s hand. “I told her I never wanted to see her, or hear from her again.” _

_ Richie blinked and paused for a second before he burst into a light laugh, shaking his head. “Damn Eds, I love you so much. I can’t believe you told your mother to shove it for me. I don’t deserve you.” He lifted their hands and kissed Eddie’s knuckles. “I love you.” _

_ “I love you too,” Eddie whispered as their food arrived. All through their meal, they never let go of each other’s hands, occasionally being deadly romantic and feeding one another pieces of their meals until there was nothing left. When the plates were cleared away, the waitress came over with a bottle of champagne, sitting it on the table with a wink, before leaving. “What- what’s this? We never ordered this?” _

_ “Actually,” Richie started, his hand moving to the back of his neck, a nervous tick. “I ordered it when I made the reservation.” He admitted, smiling bashfully. “Eds, I- I love you so fucking much and I love you even more now that you stood up to your bitch of a mother. She doesn’t deserve you.” Richie patted his jacket pocket and a wave of panic washed over his face before he breathed out and pulled a box out of his pocket, sitting it on the table between them. “I’ve been saving up for this for such a long time,” Richie laughed, popping open the box to reveal the simple gold engagement ring. “Will you marry me, Eds?” _

_ Unable to keep his composure, Eddie let the tears welling up in his eyes to spill down his cheeks, nodding his head fast, a large smile taking over his face. “Yes! Yes I will marry you!” _

* * * * *

Eddie let out a groan, reaching up for his head as he regained consciousness. It took him a few moments to gather his thoughts and to remember the last thing that happened before he blacked out. He felt a bump underneath him and he opened his eyes, finding himself staring at the roof of a moving car. His hand reached for his belt, where he kept his knife, but it was gone and more panic filled his body. 

“Hey, careful, you hit your head pretty hard,” A voice called out and Eddie’s eyes frantically sought it out. “Pull over Mike, we need to explain to him what’s going on before he attacks us.” 

The car came to a stop and seatbelts were undone before Eddie focused on two men staring around at him from the front seats. One was a young man with a skinny face and auburn hair, and the other was a slightly older man with black skin and concerned eyes. “You’re awake. How are you feeling?”

“What- where am I?” Eddie asked, moving to sit up, but his whole body ached and he had to lay back down. What the fuck happened to him? “Where’s Richie?” 

The two men looked at each other, frowning, before back at Eddie. “Who’s Richie? We found you alone.” The auburn one reached into the glove box of the car and passed Eddie back a bottle of water and a box of pills labeled ‘aspirin’. “Take these, it’ll make you feel better. We don’t want to hurt you, we saved your life.”

The words never really registered in Eddie’s brain, he was too busy going over the previous words over and over again. He was found alone. No Richie. He was found alone. Where the fuck was Richie? Why wasn’t he with him? They hadn’t been separated for long, definitely not long enough for Richie to not come back and find him unconscious, and definitely not long enough for two guys to pick him up in their car and travel god knows how far away. 

“Are you sure I was alone?” Eddie asked, his voice practically begging. “I- I really need you to think. Was there- was there another guy there? Tall, lanky, curly haired guy? Wearing glasses and looks completely and utterly useless?” He looked back and forth between the two, waiting for an answer. However, he didn’t need to. Their expression said it all. “Not- not even as one of them?”

“A walker?” The auburn haired boy asked and then shook his head. “No- the walkers were all dead when we found you. Taken out by someone else I’m sure. Either you and...and Richie? Or someone else and they assumed you were dead. Lucky for you, Mike here knows the difference between an unconscious human and a dead walker.”

Mike, the other man’s name was Mike. “I could see you breathing,” Mike smiled. “I wasn’t going to just leave you behind. I’m not that kind of person.” He looked at the other man. “I’m Mike, and this is Bill.” He turned his attention back to the front, turning the engine back on and heading back out onto the road, occasionally looking over to make sure Eddie was still breathing. “Hit your head pretty hard. I patched you up with the first aid kit, but I’ll get El to look over you when we get to the Sanctuary.”

The Sanctuary? Eddie frowned and lifted a hand to feel the bandage that was wrapped around his head. “Who’s El? Where- what?” He was more confused than ever, and all that Eddie really wanted to do was ask them to turn around and take him back to where they found him. He had to find Richie. “Take me back, please. Take me back to where you found me.”

Bill’s eyes widened and he shook his head, “We can’t do that. Not only that it is really dangerous, but you have been out for about half a day. We’ve been travelling this whole time so we are miles away.” He sighed. “Look- I’m sorry, but your boyfriend or friend or whoever is probably dead. There is no way he’s still alive if he disappeared and you never saw him again.”

“Shut up, Richie is not dead!” Eddie snapped, shaking his head. Tears welled in his eyes and he stared out at the scenery passing him by as Mike continued to drive. “He’s not- he’s not dead. He can’t be dead.” He let out a sob, wiping away his tears with the sleeve of his jumper. 

Even if they couldn’t go back, Richie wasn’t dead. Eddie would never believe that Richie was dead, even if they were separated. Richie was alive, somewhere out there, surviving. He was alive and maybe, hopefully, they would find each other again someday. 

“In answer to your question,” Mike piped up. “El is our medic at the community. We built it almost as soon as the outbreak happened. We needed to have a safe place for kids to grow up in, without fear of being attacked. We have a team that go out on runs for supplies, which was what Bill and I were doing when we found you. We’ve been gone for three weeks, and were heading back. You’re lucky we found you when we did, there was a horde heading your way that we escaped.”

That caught Eddie’s attention and he finally managed to properly sit up, looking at Mike through the rearview mirror. “From- from what direction?” He asked.

“West, and we are going East.” Mike smiled. “If your guy made it out, he probably would have gone East. He might still be alive and if… if he is then he’ll be heading our way anyway. It’s not a secret and we make it clear that we welcome new people. If he makes it to us, then we would welcome him with open arms.” Eddie had to admit, Mike was a whole lot nicer than Bill. “I’m sorry we couldn’t go back for him, Eddie.”

Eddie blinked, “How do you know my name?” He asked and Bill rolled his eyes a little before holding up Eddie’s wallet. Oh. His drivers licence. Duh. “So- you’re taking me to a safe zone?”

Mike nodded his head, “We are. You’ll get your own space and as long as you can pull your own weight, you are more than welcome to stay. Will you give us a chance, Eddie?” He asked and Eddie glanced out of the back window once more before turning back to face the front, nodding his head.

“I will.”

* * * * *

_ “I can’t believe you!” Eddie giggled against Richie’s lips as they stumbled into their apartment, lips pressing together every few seconds. As they made it fully inside, Richie kicked the door closed and pushed Eddie up against the wall, kissing down his neck. _

_ “What can’t you believe, Eds?” Richie breathed into Eddie’s ear, smirking as he shivered. “Come on, tell me. What can’t you believe?” _

_ Eddie pulled back, his eyes dark and lips swollen from their kisses. “We’re engaged! That’s what I can’t believe.” Pure happiness was plastered all over Eddie’s face, as though he couldn’t quite believe how lucky he was. Richie replied by leaning in and kissing Eddie once more, leading him into the bedroom so they could properly consummate their engagement. _

_ Later, once the two of them had calmed down, Richie pulled Eddie close so their bodies were almost moulding into one. Eddie looked up at him through his eyelashes, his hair sticking to his forehead with sweat as they basked in the afterglow. “Do you want a Spring or Autumn Wedding?” _

_ Eddie pursed his lips in thought, thinking over what would be the best possible scenario. “Hm, I’m not sure. On one hand Spring is cool and the weather is crisp and fresh, but Autumn has all those lovely colours.” _

_ Richie nodded his head and pressed a kiss to Eddie’s hair, “We can think about it tomorrow. Over breakfast? Right now I think we need to get some sleep, it’s been a crazy day.” Eddie agreed and they were soon fast asleep in each other’s arms. _

_ In the background, outside and all around, they were so caught up in one another they missed the Public Service Announcement. _

**“This is a public service announcement. There has been an outbreak. Unknown Virus. Do not interact. Remain indoors where possible. This is a public service announcement.”**

* * * * *

“Do you know how to defend yourself?” Stan asked as the three of them trudged their way through the woods. “Against the dead, I mean. Do you know how to kill them?”

Bev sighed next to Stan and Richie spotted her rolling her eyes. He wanted to smile, but he was still grieving the loss of Eddie. The thought of him walking around as one of those…things made him want to throw up, slam his fists against the tree and scream. So he remained silent and stoic.

“Damn, Stan…the guy just lost the love of his life, give him a break,” Bev hissed, elbowing him in the side and turning her attention to Richie. “I’m sorry about him, he’s a survivalist. Don’t worry if you can’t kill them, we can teach you.”

Richie did smile slightly at that, biting his lip, “It’s okay. I know how to kill them. Eddie taught me, after he figured it out by accident.” At the mere mention of Eddie’s name, Richie choked back a sob, scrunching his eyes closed. “We have to stab them in the brain, otherwise it’s no use, they’ll keep coming back.”

Stan hummed in approval and they continued their walking in moderate silence. Richie felt a little out of place with them, more because he didn’t know them personally and it seemed that they were close to one another. He was like an outsider.

The silence was deafening, which left Richie with no other choice but to drown in his thoughts. He thought back to the last thing he could remember before blacking out, and how he had no idea how they had become separated so foolishly. He couldn’t help but think about if Eddie was still alive, how worried he would be for Richie when he realised he was gone.

A noise caught Richie’s attention and out of the side of his eye he spotted one of the walkers, blood gushing from his jaw as it stumbled hungrily towards Stan. Quickly, he reached for the spear hooked into his bag and pulled it out, stabbing the walker right in the eye as it was mere inches from Stan’s face. Both Bev and Stan whipped their heads, pulling out their weapons in case of anymore, but it looked as though it was alone.

“You saved me,” Stan breathed, stuffing his knife back into his belt. “Thanks.”

“I guess we’re even,” Richie smiled back, just slightly and Stan nodded before they continued on their way, remaining extra vigilant for any walkers that might have strayed away from their horde.

As the sun began to set and darkness crept into the woods, Beverly set up camp and Stan produced a rabbit from his bag that he must have killed prior to meeting Richie. The two of them got to work, organising the fire and cooking the rabbit for dinner, distributing it between the three of them.

Once all the food had been devoured and things had been cleaned up, Bev leaned over to Richie, “If you don’t mind me asking, how long were you and Eddie together?” She had a curious smile on her lips and Richie couldn’t find it in him to ignore her. Maybe if he talked about Eddie, his memory would stay fresh in his mind.

“We met in college when we are both eighteen and very much not in tune with New York. We were friends at first, great friends, but then we fell in love and moved in together. We only got engaged the night before everything went down and now- fuck…now he’s gone and I’m never going to see him again.” Richie stopped, wiping away his tears with the sleeve of his jacket.

A hand rested on his knee and Richie turned his head to meet Beverly’s eyes, which were sad and understanding, “I know how you feel. I lost my boyfriend in the outbreak too. A few days in as a matter of fact. We were out, trying to salvage some food for somewhere and one of them came out of nowhere. Tom, he didn’t want to die so he pushed me out of the way to get to the door but he tripped and fell. I managed to climb on top of some shelves and out of the building via the ventilation system. Tom…he was ripped apart.”

Next to them, Stan scoffed, “He deserved all he got, the asshole. I know you said you were trying to work things out but he as an abusive piece of shit and he deserved what happened to him. He knew what he was doing and instead of working together to get you both out, he tried to have you killed instead.”

Bev sighed, nodding her head, “I know that, I do, but watching him die like that was still… it’s not a death I would wish upon my worst enemy, let’s put it like that.” Richie winced a little at how Bev’s face changed as she talked about it, and a feeling of nausea worked up in his stomach.

“I lost people too,” Stan whispered after a while, looking down at his lap. “My parents. Luckily I never actually saw them die, but Bev and I came across their walker corpses about a week after the outbreak. I couldn’t leave them like that, so we put them down.” He sighed. “They’d been out on a date and were planning on visiting me at my flat the next day for dinner. Of course, that never happened as I’m guessing the place they were eating was attacked and they were caught in the crossfire.”

“I’m so sorry,” Richie whispered. He hadn’t even thought about his parents, not when Eddie and he were too busy running for their lives and trying to figure out what the fuck was going on. “I feel kind of shitty now, I didn’t even think about my parents. They live up in Maine and…I don’t know if they are dead or alive. I hope they are alive and somewhere safe.”

Both Bev and Stan reached out, taking one of Richie’s hands each and squeezing tightly. “It’s okay, everything is sort of crazy, it’s impossible to keep track of everyone, especially with the signal down and no access to the internet. We just have to hope that they are safe and know how to defend themselves.”

“Do you guys have a camp or something?” Richie asked, looking between the two of them. “Like a safe place or?”

Bev shook her head, “No uh, it’s just the two of us. It’s been the two of us for a while now and we’re trying to find a safe place I suppose. If there even is one out there somewhere. You can come with us if you want to? Be a permanent addition to our group?” Her eyes were hopeful and Richie swallowed, thinking about it. Eddie was gone, and he was never coming back. All he could do was move forward.

“Alright,” Richie nodded his head. “Count me in.”

* * * * *

_ The morning following their engagement, Eddie and Richie got dressed before making their way outside towards their favourite diner for breakfast. The second Eddie stepped out into the fresh air, he could sense something was seriously wrong. There was a funny smell in the air, something morbid, but that wasn’t what caught his attention. What caught Eddie’s attention was that it was 8am on a Thursday morning in New York City…and the place was dead. Not a single soul in sight. _

_ “Okay what the hell,” Eddie breathed, looking from side to side as Richie gripped onto his hand tighter. They began making their way down the street, keeping their eyes out for any sign of human life, but there was no one. Even the bakery on the corner of their street, that normally opened at 5am and was busy at this time of day, was closed, shutters down and everything. _

_ Next to him, Richie pulled out his phone, fumbling around with the buttons until he let out a frustrated groan, “No signal. Since when have we ever had no signal in the middle of fucking New York City? What the hell is going on?” He stuffed the device into his pocket, grumbling under his breath and Eddie felt panic surge up in his gut. _

_ “Something is seriously wrong, Richie…” Eddie mumbled, his palms beginning to sweat as he looked from side to side, making his way down the street. “Where is everyone? Why are there no people? It’s New York…there is always people around even in the middle of the night, never mind rush hour in the morning.” _

_ Richie nodded his head, swallowing, “I know, just…let’s not panic okay? It could be anything. There has to be some logical explanation for this. There were people around yesterday, and now there is no-one. There must be a reason why they have all vanished into thin air. People don’t just do that.” _

_ The second the words left Richie’s lips, a low growling echoed from down one of the alleyways. Eddie paused, staring into the darkness and the dumpsters that crowded the space. Some rustling noises followed, as though someone was trying to dig through the trash. “H-Hello?” Eddie called out, in the hopes that it was another person, and they would be able to get the answers that they craved. _

_ The rusting stopped abruptly, sending a chill down Eddie’s spine as he looked at Richie. What followed was probably the most horrifying moment that Eddie had ever experienced. A figure emerged from behind the dumpster, tall enough to be a human, and stumbled towards them, into the light. The sight that befell both Eddie and Richie caused them to take multiple steps back, eyes widening in fear. The person that had appeared from the shadows was no person at all, but something else entirely. It was like a walking corpse. Fresh blood covered its mouth as it moved closer to them, teeth baring and ready to attack. _

_ “Run!” Richie gasped, finding his voice as he grabbed Eddie’s wrist and tugged him down the street, their legs moving faster than they ever had before. The corpse was following them, stumbling fast down the street, groaning loudly. Suddenly, Eddie came to a stop as he spotted a metal pole laying on the ground. “Eds, what the fuck.” _

_ “You’ve seen zombie movies right?” Eddie gasped out, breathing heavy from running and panic. “You know that we need to stab them through the brain.” He grabbed the pole just as the corpse reached them and in one single movement, he shoved it through its skull and out the other end. The corpse collapsed at their feet, lifeless and Eddie let out a choked sob. “Holy shit.” _

_ Richie had a hand covering his mouth as they stared at the scene before them. “What…what the hell was that and…what?” He shook his head and Eddie cupped his cheeks, making Richie look at him. _

_ “Hey, calm down. We need to get off the street. If there are more of these things I…I don’t want to meet them without having some sort of permanent weapon and an idea of what I’m doing.” They looked at their surroundings and Eddie spotted a school sign in the distance. “School, over there. Come on, let’s go before more of them arrive and we end up just like them.” _

_ Just as he muttered that, a loud collective groaning noise came from behind them. Eddie whipped his head around and to his horror, there was a whole lot of those things coming right for them. Without thinking, he grabbed Richie’s hand and dragged him towards the school and, hopefully, to safety. _

_ * * * * * _

The car pulled to a stop outside a gate surrounding a large building. Eddie looked out between the driver and passenger’s seat, his eyes wide at the building revealed as the gates opened. Mike drove in, giving one of the guards at the gate a wave and it was closed firmly behind them almost immediately.

They drove up the main drive, stopping outside the large building and Mike cut the engine before sliding out of the car. Eddie waited inside as Mike and Bill were reunited by a group of people, hugging them and patting their back, making sure that they were safe. A lump formed in his throat as Bill was greeted with a kiss by a young lady with short black hair.

His eyes widened when Mike turned around and motioned for Eddie to get out of the car, which he did, slowly. The group that had gathered around Bill and Mike turned to face him, and after a few seconds of awkward silence, a girl with shoulder length brown hair stepped forward and offered out her hand.

“Hi, welcome to Hawkins Camp. I’m Jane, but my friends just call me El. You must be Eddie?” She asked and Eddie blinked, extending his own hand and shaking Jane’s in greeting. “Nice to meet you.”

The boy who had been standing next to Jane stepped forward and took her free hand, squeezing it tightly. “I’m Mike. Mike Wheeler and that was Mike Hanlon who brought you here. This is Audra, Ben, Dustin, Lucas, Will, Max, Steve, Nancy and Jonathan. We were all together when the world ended and worked together to create this safe place. It’s named after our home town in Indiana.”

Eddie listened to Mike with as much interest as he could muster. His eyes flitted across the group and a little surge of jealousy flared as he realised they were all still together and had each other. His mind moved to Richie and his heart ached. His thoughts were interrupted by a loud, brash, female voice and he looked behind the group to see a young and rather small woman making her way through the crowd.

“Why are you all just standing around? I need help back here and you are all milling around as if there is no work to be done!” She screeched, crossing her arms as she looked around. Then her eyes landed on Eddie and they widened to the size of saucers. “Who is this? Aren’t you going to introduce me?”

In all his years of being a gay man, Eddie had never experience the flirting of a woman, but he knew it when he saw it. Just the way the woman was looking at him make him uncomfortable and Mike Wheeler turned around, rolling his eyes in the process. “Eddie, this is Myra. She is one of our nurses. Myra, this is Eddie…he is a new survivor to the camp. Bill and Mike found him on their route home.”

The woman’s, Myra, eyes widened as she took a step closer to Eddie, holding out her hand. On instinct, Eddie stepped back and let out a nervous laugh. “It’s nice to meet you all…I don’t know how to thank you enough for bringing me here and…and trusting me in your safe space. I really appreciate it.”

Bill’s girlfriend, Audra, stepped forward and pulled Eddie into a hug, “I know how tough it is to lose someone you care about. My brother…he didn’t make it either. I know it’s nothing like losing a romantic partner, but if you ever want to talk about it, you know where I am.” She reached down to squeeze Eddie’s hand. “Now, come with me, I’ll show you to your new room.”

The room that Audra showed him was small, yet perfect for him. It wasn’t as though Eddie was planning on spending a lot of time in here. He wanted to pull his weight and go out on runs with the team. First though, he had to offer his services in the medical wing, since he was in fact, a doctor. The only thing that made him feel uncomfortable was the fact that Myra was also working in the medical wing, which meant they would be in close proximity to one another.

It was a little mean of Eddie to judge someone when he barely knew them, but call in intuition and just the thought of the other woman made him want to cringe. He shook his head and left the room, making his way back to the main area and then to the hospital wing. Luckily, Myra wasn’t there, but Jane was.

“Hey, uh, I would like to offer my services,” Eddie smiled, and Jane grinned back at him.

“You’re a doctor? Oh you have no idea how amazing that is. We are all sort of winging it here, it would be nice to have someone who knows what they are doing.” Jane smiled, leaning him down the corridor. “Are you fully qualified?”

“Not fully, but I was close. I was in my fifth year of medical school. I am familiar with a lot of the procedures and I will be able to learn new things quickly. I’ve been technically studying medicine since I was five years old.”

Jane tilted her head to the side, as though she was going to question him, but she changed her mind and just nodded. “It’s better than what we have. Since you are the most qualified, our team will follow your lead. Is that alright with you?”

Eddie nodded his head, smiling a little. “Who is my team, if you don’t mind my asking?”

“Of course not. Currently we have Dustin, Nancy and Myra on our medical team, but as I said, they are just winging it.” Jane explained. “Also, about Myra, just ignore her and she’ll hopefully move on to someone else in time. She can be a bit…much sometimes.”

It was getting late at that point, so Eddie made his way back to his room, laying back on the bed. He lifted his left hand, engagement ring glinting in the moonlight, making tears fill in his eyes and spill down over his cheek. He turned onto his side and spotted something sitting on the cabinet across from the bed. He sat up and walked over, picking the item up, realising it was a chain for around his neck.

With another sob, Eddie slipped off his ring and slipped it onto the chain, securing it around his neck, keeping it close to his heart. 

*** * * * ***

_ Richie dragged Eddie down the corridor of the school, keeping their fingers laced together so they weren’t separated. He looked from side to side frantically before spotting a closet at the far end, as far away from the growling walkers as he could get. _

_ “This way,” Richie muttered, dragging Eddie to the closet and pulling him inside and slamming the door shut, moving all the way to the bed and sitting down, tugging Eddie between his legs. For a long time, all that could be heard was their breathing as they clung to each other for dear life. _

_ “Richie?” Eddie whispered after a while of silence. In response, Richie squeezed Eddie’s hand, too scared to speak. “Were those zombies?” He asked. “I’m not dreaming am I? We- we really are in the middle of a zombie apocalypse, aren't we? That thing that I stabbed…that was a zombie. Holy shit.” _

_ In an aid to calm Eddie down, Richie pulled him closer and pressed a kiss to his hair, “Hey, it’s okay. Breathe for me Eds. We’ll figure this out okay? The important thing is that we’re together. Right?” He pressed another kiss to Eddie’s hair, breathing deeply as he felt his fiancé calm down. _

_ They fell into another silence, the only noise coming from beyond the door and it was just a low growling. Richie felt tears build up in his eyes as he squeezed them closed and held onto Eddie just that little bit tighter. He had only just gotten engaged to him and now there was the looming danger of losing him to…whatever they were that lay beyond the door. _

_ “You want to know the first moment I knew I liked you?” Richie asked, voicing his thoughts. He wanted to try and take Eddie’s mind away from the horror that was outside, to bring his thoughts back to when things were simple…happier. Eddie made a questioning noise and Richie continued. “We had been on about…three dates and we were at this ice cream store, taking advantage of the free scoop deal they had going on. You were so tired because you’d been studying all day, but you still wanted to go out with me. So we went anyway and you got some ice cream on your nose. You looked so tired and so…so fucking adorable and I just…I knew right then that you were special and I wanted to spend as much time with you as I could.” _

_ Eddie looked up at him then, their eyes meeting in the dark, which was only illuminated by the light from the small window above them and the crack under the door. “I knew I liked you after we went ice skating and even though you had no clue how to skate, you still went on the ice and almost broke your nose. No-one had ever done that for me before. Ever.” _

_ Richie let out a laugh, remembering that moment as though it was yesterday. The beginning of their relationship was fresh and new and exciting, but unlike others who would have gotten bored, Richie would never get bored of Eddie. Every day was an adventure with him. “I love you so much Eddie Kaspbrak. No matter what, I swear to you, we’re going to get married.” _

_ “I love you too, Richie,” Eddie whispered, back, leaning up and closing the distance between them. Just then, a loud group of growls echoed through the halls of the school and Richie pulled back, moving out of Eddie’s embrace to crawl over to the door. He opened it just a little, peeking out and a horrified look took over his face as he slammed it closed and shoved a few items against the door to keep it closed. Eddie frowned, “What is it?” _

_ “Shh,” Richie hissed, crawling back over to him and pulling him back into his arms. “There- huge horde, coming this way,” he breathed. “Just…try and stay as quiet as you can okay? I promise that we’ll be okay. We’re going to get out of here alive. I swear.” _

_ As they huddled close together inside the closet of the school, the horde of walkers made their way closer and closer, the sounds deafening the two of them in the closet. All they could do was hope, and pray, that it would pass and leave them unnoticed to go on for at least one more day, together.  _

*** * * * ***

“You want to hold the gun like this,” Bev instructed Richie, moving behind him to adjust his grip. “Like that, so when you aim, you’ll have a better chance of hitting your target first time.” She stepped back. “However, we don’t want to be using too many bullets, as they attract sound and ammo is scarce these days. My preferred weapon of use is a knife. That way you can stab the walker right through the brain and the whole things is so quiet that you won’t attract anymore.”

Richie blinked as he took in all of the information and rubbed his eyes. He had been on the road with Bev and Stan for a few months now, and in those months the two of them had taken it upon themselves to teach Richie some much needed survival skills. First, before weapons were even brought into the equation, they had taught him how to fight with his hands and how to set up traps around the camp, both for food and to keep them safe.

It had taken Richie a while to get the hang of the hand combat first, but now he could say he was just as good as Bev and even maybe Stan. The next step though, was to get him trained up with a weapon, more specifically, guns and knives. He sat the gun to the side and picked up the knife, following Bev’s instructions on the already dead walker they had tied to a tree for practice.

“Your grip is too loose,” Stan muttered, moving from his place by the campfire and walking over to Richie. He adjusted his grip, like Bev had done with the gun, and made it a lot tighter around the handle. “If you don’t have a firm enough grip, then it won’t go deep enough, giving the walker another chance to attack, and probably bite and kill you. Just to put it into perspective.”

It was beginning to get dark, which meant the training for the day was coming to an end. Bev made the rounds around the camp, setting up the traps that would alert them if walkers entered their vicinity. Richie took a seat by the fire, low but warm as Stan focused on cooking the rabbit they had caught for dinner. Once they had eaten, Stan took an early bed as Bev and Richie remained awake, listening to the sound of the forest around them.

“If you don’t mind me asking, I know it’s still really tough, but could you tell me about Eddie?” Bev asked, turning her head to meet Richie’s, face illuminated by the fire. His breathing hitched as he thought about his fiancé, the love of his life and he let out a shuddered breath.

“I told you how we met, a while back,” Richie started, running a hand through his hair. “He was a breath of fresh air, the light of my life. No-one I have ever met had made me smile as much as he did, even when we were just friends. He never took any of my shit, he was a little spitfire.” Richie swallowed, choking up. “The only thing that held him back was his mother, she was a complete psycho and she definitely did not approve of me. She hated my guts for corrupting her precious son. When I was planning on proposing, I think she caught wind of it, because she had tried to split us up, but Eddie…he eventually cut her out of his life completely.”

Bev was listening intently, her chin resting on her hand, “He sounds like he was really special, Richie,” she whispered, moving to squeeze his knee in comfort. 

Richie smiled back, biting his lip, “He was, he was so very special. He was so…in tune with me it was insane. We were to peas in a pod our friends would say and I believed them. I was so…god I was so looking forward to marrying him, spending the rest of my life with him. Maybe even adopting a dog, or a cat and growing old together.” He sighed, shaking his head. “I wish I hadn’t let my guard down and believed that I had finally caught a break, finally made it and found happiness in a world that had dealt me such a shitty hand growing up. Now all I know was that it was just lying dormant…waiting to erupt.”

The hand that was resting on Richie’s knee, moved to squeeze his hand, a sad smile on Bev’s face as she did so. His stomach twisted, as he knew what she was thinking, and he knew before she even opened her mouth what she was going to say. He knew, because it was all he ever thought about, and probably would be all he would ever think about for a long time to come. 

“I know that...I know that you want to hope that Eddie is okay. That he got away from whatever separated you and he’s safe with people just like you are with me,” Bev started, biting her lip as she pondered over how to word her next sentence. “I don’t want to shatter that hope Richie, you know I don’t. You love him, that much is clear and you probably will always love him until the day you die. Sometimes that happens, you find the one and even when you lose them, there is no way you can move on to someone else, as they were ‘it’ for you.” The hand that was holding his tightened. “I just- you know that there is a higher percentage that Eddie is dead...or a walker, than he is alive...right?”

Even though Richie knew what was coming, it didn’t make the pain in his chest ache any less. He knew Bev was right, that Eddie was dead or even worse, one of those things. He let out a shaky breath and he nodded his head. “I know,” he whispered. “I know that he’s probably dead, and that’s why he never came to find me when I was knocked out in the woods. I know that there is probably no way he is still alive and breathing, not with all the craziness the world is today. Hell, I’m surprised I’m still alive, and I know I wouldn’t be if it weren’t for you and Stan.” He wiped the tears from his eyes. “Just- sometimes I like to think that Eddie is okay, that he was saved by some other group and he is safe, alive and well. I know it’s not true, but you can let me think it is...can’t you Bev? You can let me have that?”

Bev smiled and moved her hand to run through Richie’s curls, leaning to press a kiss to his forehead. “Of course I can Rich...of course I can.” Richie knew it was going to take a long time to get over the loss of Eddie, but with Bev and Stan by his side, he felt that he at least had a fighting chance.

* * * * *

_ At some point, the two of them had fallen asleep in that closet, holding onto each other for dear life. Eddie was the first one to wake up, his eyes adjusting to the darkness of the closet. He moved out of Richie’s arms and crawled over to the shelves, climbing up so he could look out of the window.  _

_ The sun was just starting to rise over the buildings, casting an orange glow over the deserted parking lot of the school they were hiding in. From where Eddie was, he could count at least ten of the walkers roaming around, probably searching for something...or someone to eat. He sighed and climbed back down off of the shelf, making his way to the door and opening it just a crack. _

_ The halls were empty, just like they had been moments before the horde arrived. Blood was trailed across the floor, probably from one of the walkers feet dragging along as it walked. Eddie shuddered and closed the door over, trying to think of the best escape route with minimal chance of running into a walker. He looked around the closet, spotting a few thin broken pipes and he picked them up, testing their weight in his grip.  _

_ “Richie,” Eddie whispered, moving over to his fiance and shaking him awake. “We need to go, all the walkers are gone, so we need to leave before they come back.” He shoved one of the pipes into his hand. “This is to use if any of them catch us, okay?” _

_ Richie blinked a few times but nodded his head, accepting the weapon from Eddie. Slowly, the two of them made their way to the door, slipping out into the corridor and making their way to the exit. The place seemed to be empty, save from a reanimated walker who had no lower half of a body. Eddie shuddered before putting it out of its misery by thrusting the pipe through its brain.  _

_ “I know this is really inappropriate, but seeing you kill zombies is really turning me on,” Richie muttered and Eddie punched him in the side. “Hey!” He hissed. _

_ “Beep beep, Richie,” Eddie whispered back, taking his hand as they finally made it to the exit on the other side of the school. From what Eddie could see, there was a forest a few hundred yards from the exit, and if they made a run for it, they could make it there without causing any unwanted attention. “You see that forest?” He asked. _

_ Richie nodded, “Yeah, what about it?” _

_ “I need you to pretend for a moment that you are the best damn runner in the world,” Eddie begged, squeezing Richie’s hands. “On the count of three, we are going to run straight for the forest, as fast as we can, without creating too much commotion that those...those things notice us. Okay? Can you do that?” _

_ One second, they were standing side by side, and the next Richie was cupping Eddie’s cheeks and he was being pulled into a deep kiss. When they pulled back, Richie looked deep into his eyes, “I will do whatever it takes to get out of here alive with you, Eds.” He spoke seriously. “But...in the case that I don’t make it. I want you to know that I love you. So fucking much.” _

_ “Stop that,” Eddie shook his head, eyes narrow. “We’re both going to make it and we’ll be just fine. You owe me a wedding, remember? I’m going to hold you to it. You’re not dying on me Rich, not now, not ever.” _

_ Richie grinned and gave Eddie one last kiss on the lips, “I love you anyway.” He cleared his throat and looked to the door, taking a deep breath and Eddie followed suit. “Ready?” _

_ Eddie nodded, “Ready.” As soon as the word left his lips, the two of them pushed open the door and made a run for it. About half way there, a walker appeared out of nowhere, only for Eddie to smash it’s head in with the pipe and continue to run. Luckily, there weren’t many walkers on that side of the school. All of them having congregated on the other side, where there was a higher chance of a food source. As they reached the inside of the forest, out of the eyes of any walkers, Eddie collapsed against the trees to regain his breath. Richie had leaned on the tree opposite him, breathing heavy as though he had just run a marathon.  _

_ “W-We…” Eddie gasped out. “W-We have to keep m-moving.” He pushed off the tree and gripped onto Richie’s hand, continuing to pull him through the woods and hopefully into a safer situation.  _

_ They kept walking through the woods until it started to get dark, and luckily found a small cabin shelter to stay the night. As soon as the sun rose the next morning, they were on their way once more. By midday, both Eddie and Richie were starving, so when they finally reached a road with a row of abandoned cars, it was like they hit the jackpot.  _

_ “Search the cars for food and...and basically anything we can use as clothes or weapons or whatever. A first aid kit would be handy to have too,” Eddie explained and Richie saluted him before moving to one of the cars. Eddie started on the one next to him, keeping a close eye on Richie. He didn’t want anything to happen to him, especially when they were out in the open.  _

_ Just as Eddie was about to move onto the second car, there was a loud sound in the distance, making the two of them freeze. Richie met his eyes from the car he was standing at, fear in his expression. “Eds...what was that?” _

_ The noise echoed again, making the birds scatter from the trees and Eddie felt an icy chill run down his spine. He swallowed and looked at Richie, the words coming out as a frightened whispered. “It was a gunshot.” _

* * * * *

Eddie hung up his jacket at the end of his shift in the medical wing, stepping out into the fresh air and making his way over to where Max and El were sitting. It had taken Eddie a few months after arriving at Hawkins Camp to stop calling her Jane, as she much preferred her nickname, El to her birth name. Finally, after having her call him Edward for a week straight, he had gotten the picture and started calling her El. 

That was three years ago, and now Eddie couldn’t even imagine ever calling her Jane. He took a seat next to them at the table, soaking up some of the remaining sun before it turned dark. “Are they back yet?” He asked only for Max to shake her head. 

Two days ago, Mike Wheeler and Lucas had gone on a run which was only meant to last a day at most. El, who had since become Mike’s wife over the three years and was currently pregnant with their baby, was starting to worry and rightfully so. 

“They’ll be fine El,” Max assured her, squeezing her friends’ hand tightly. El made a face, but nodded her head, knowing her husband was smart and he was surely going to come home soon. 

Their comfortable silence was soon interrupted by the voice of Myra, sending a shiver of horror down Eddie’s spine. He had faced off so many of the walkers in the past three years, but nothing scared him more than Myra. She sat down, fluttering her eyelashes at Eddie, trying to reach a hand over to take his. “Hi Eddie.”

“Hi Myra...shouldn’t you be in the medical ward?” Eddie asked. He was sure it was Myra’s shift...positive even. Myra just giggled and twirled a finger around her hair, leaning closer. 

“Oh I swapped shifts, I wanted to come out here and talk to you. What I have to say is really important...and I hope you really hope you consider it.” Myra spoke in her sickenly sweet voice, making Eddie want to vomit. 

Across the table, Eddie saw both Max and El raise their eyebrows at her, clearly interested in what Myra had to say to Eddie. Even though Eddie couldn’t stand to be near the woman, who still couldn’t get a hint after three years, even he had to admit he was curious. “Okay?”

“The world is dying Eddie,” Myra started, throwing her hands into the air dramatically. “Those walkers are killing us off one by one, and it’s not like baby Wheeler is going to be enough to keep the human race going...if you know what I mean?” She asked and Eddie shook his head. He had no idea what she meant. “Ugh, Eddie...I am saying that you and I should use our mutual attraction to one another to try and repopulate the earth! Make like baby Myra’s and Eddie’s!”

Eddie’s eyes widened and he looked to El and Max for help. El was staring just as shocked as Eddie was, and Max looked as though she was about to burst into hysterical laughter. “Oh Myra, sweetie,” Max burst out, giggling. “You know Eddie’s  _ gay _ right?” She announced. 

Right at that time, Myra had taken a drink of water, only to spit it out all over the table. She blinked at Max and then back to Eddie, who smiled a little in agreement. “W-What...you’re gay?”

“I have been trying to tell you that for the past three years now,” Eddie tried to explain. “I’m really sorry Myra...I’m just not interested in women. It’s nothing against you, really. You are probably a really nice girl and I would love to be your friend, I just...don’t like you like  _ that. _ ”

Myra blinked a few times before she sighed and nodded, moving her hand away from Eddie’s. “I really should learn to listen, huh?” She asked, letting out a disappointed breath. “I’m sorry Eddie...if I made you uncomfortable or anything. I would love to be your friend, as you are a really awesome guy. I hope you can forgive me?”

Eddie smiled and stood up, walking around and pulling Myra into a hug, “Of course I can forgive you, we are in no position right now to refuse friendship.” He smiled. “If it’s okay with you though, I could really use you being in the medical wing in my absence. You are my best nurse after all.” 

With a nod, Myra disappeared back into the building and Eddie let out a breath. Before he could say anything, Jonathan was screaming from the gate, alerting them that Mike and Lucas were back safe and sound. He helped Max take El down to where the car was and he smiled as she was reunited with her husband. Max wrapped her arms around Lucas, hugging him tight, “Where were you?”

“Car ran out of gas, so we had to take some from some abandoned cars, which took a while. Then it got late so we had to find somewhere safe to stay before making our way home,” Lucas explained, kissing Max’s head. “We’re fine, and we managed to get all of your supplies Eddie, for the Ultrasound.”

Eddie grinned and looked at both Mike and El, “Are you two ready to see your baby?” He asked and the two of them nodded, making their way back to the wing where Eddie set up the machine. He had El lay back on the bed, and squirted the gel over her stomach before moving the device over it. As they all looked at the screen, what they saw surprised them all. 

“Is...is that?” Mike stammered and El let out a giggle. 

“Mike, El...looks like you’re having twins! Congratulations!” Eddie grinned and stood up, leaving the couple to have their moment together. He leaned against the wall and brought his hand up to the chain around his neck, pulling out his ring and kissing it gently. It had been a few weeks since he last thought about Richie, and fresh tears built up in his eyes. God he needed to pull himself together. 

He headed back to his room, his bag for the run he was meant to be going on with Mike Hanlon and Bill the following morning sitting on his bed. He made sure he was all packed and prepared before collapsing into bed, emotionally and physically exhausted. 

The following morning, Eddie headed out to the car where Bill and MIke were already waiting for him. However, just as they were about to head off, Max was running down the hill fast. “Eddie! Eddie we need you to stay!” She stopped at the car. “Dustin- he has a high fever and no-one knows what to do, not like you.”

He looked to Bill and MIke who nodded, “Go, go. We can do this as a duo. You can come next time okay?” Mike assured him and Eddie nodded, taking off up the hill with Max to see to Dustin. 

Mike was right, he would go out with them next time. 

* * * * *

_ What followed the sound of a gunshot was the revving of multiple car engines. Eddie felt Richie grip onto Eddie’s arm and dragged him back into the trees as about twenty cars sped around the corner and past all of the abandoned cars, shooting their guns into the tree. _

_ Eddie shoved Richie and they fell onto the ground, reducing the chance of them being hit by one of the many flying bullets. Eddie groaned to himself, as he was sure that the noise was going to attract the walkers, which were probably close by. Once the cars had passed, Eddie scrambled to his feet and shoved Richie further into the woods.  _

_ “Eds...what are you doing?” Richie asked, frowning as Eddie continued to shove him towards the trees. “Eds. Stop. What are you doing.” _

_ Eddie stopped and took hold of Richie’s shoulders. “Keep running, I’ll catch up to you. I need to go back for those supplies, we can’t lose them. I’m smaller than you and I can sneak over there quickly without being noticed. So keep running and I’ll catch up. I promise.”  _

_ His voice was stern, leaving no room for argument and he watched the emotions fall over Richie’s face before he nodded, taking Eddie’s face in his hands and giving him a kiss. “Okay, I’ll go, but only because you’re so stubborn and we’re wasting time. I love you okay? I’ll see you soon.” _

_ “I love you too,” Eddie nodded, tilting his head to kiss the inside of Richie’s wrist. “I’ll see you soon. I’ll be right behind you I promise. I just need to get those supplies. If we don’t get them, we’re going to die.” He took a step back and watched Richie nod before running off into the woods. _

_ Richie focused on the woods in front of him as he ran, trying to stay in a straight line. He had to make sure that Eddie would be able to catch up with him. As he was so focused on what was in front of him, Richie forgot to pay attention to what was underneath him, and he tripped over a loose branch, knocking his glasses off of his face.  _

_ “Shit,” Richie hissed, his hand scrambling to pick them up. As he gripped them, he managed to shove them back onto his face and get to his feet, only to stumble again and whack his head against a rock lying on the forest floor, knocking him out cold.  _

_ Taking a deep breath, Eddie rushed back out towards the cars, shoving as much of the stuff into a bag that he could, including a first aid kit. He was so engrossed in the supplies, that he didn’t hear the walker approach him from behind until it gripped onto his shirt. Eddie was fast though, twisting around and kicking the walker to the floor. In the midst of the surprise, Eddie lost his balance and stumbled to the ground, whacking his head off of the car bumper, hard.  _

_ His vision went blurry as the walker crawled towards him, hand scrambling to get a hold of his flesh, to bite in and eat him alive. Eddie wasn’t going to let that happen, and even though he could feel himself losing consciousness, there was no way he was going to let this...this thing kill him. He had a fiance he had to get back to.  _

_ Eddie kicked his leg again, knocking it right into the walkers face and reaching for the pipe that had rolled under the car. He stretched for it, gripping it tight just as the walker lunged towards him and Eddie shoved it through it’s brain, killing it instantly. Now that he was out of danger, Eddie’s vision blurred once again and he let it overcome him, darkness filling his sight as he passed out at the side of the road.  _

* * * * *

“You know, I think there is a town up here,” Stan announced, pointing ahead of them as they walked along the road. The thought of finding a town, with abandoned houses and the chance of sleeping in a real bed, made Richie let out a hopeful sigh. They kept walking, and just like Stan said, a town appeared in the distance. “Told you.”

Bev let out a whoop and they started walking a little faster, hoping to raid a supermarket and get some half decent food. As they entered the centre of the town though, the silence the three of them had grown used to was shattered and replaced with screams and yells for help. 

Immediately, they jumped into action and rounded the corner, freezing at the sight of two men standing on top of an SUV, fending off a group of about twenty walkers. They were surrounded, and trying to prevent the walkers from getting into the pharmacy door, and Richie realised that they were trying to get some medical supplies. 

Without thinking, Richie grabbed his hand made spear from behind him and rushed towards the hoard, taking out three of them in two swift moves. Bev and Stan had joined them, taking out the others, with the help of the two men on top of the car until they were all lying lifeless on the ground around the car. 

Richie wiped the grime away from his face and placed his spear back behind him, turning to face the two strangers, “You guys alright?” He asked and the man with the black toned skin nodded. 

“Yeah, thanks for saving us. We were surrounded,” He breathed out, running a hand over his brow. He glanced around, searching for any more walkers that might have been attracted by the noise. 

The other man jumped off of the SUV and held out his hand, “Hi there, I’m Bill and this is my friend Mike. Really, thank you so much for saving us. We really needed to get this medicine back to our camp. We have...we have sick people and a pregnant woman who is relying on us.”

That took Richie by surprise and his eyes widened, “You- you have a place safe enough to have children?” He asked and Bill nodded his head. “What- where? Is...is there room for three more?” As much as the three of them were used to travelling out in the open, they had talked about finding a place to settle down, if they would be welcome. “Please we can pull our weight.”

Bev stepped up behind Richie and placed a hand on his shoulder. “I’m Bev, and this is my friend Stan,” she motioned behind her to Stan and he stepped forward to shake their hands. Richie didn’t miss the look that Mike and Stan shared when their hands met in a handshake. He had seen a look like that before...in himself. He could even feel the charged attraction between them, a smirk forming on his lips. Later, he’d ask Stan about that later. “And this is Richie, he’s been through a lot...we all have. If you would have us we’d really appreciate helping you. We’re good out here, we’d be great on runs.”

Both Bill and Mike turned to look at one another the second Bev introduced Richie and then back to him. Mike cleared his throat, “We would love to be able to take you in. As long as you can pull your weight. First though, you wouldn’t mind helping us raid the shops and pharmacy for supplies would you?”

None of them disagreed, elated at the thought of being accepted into a safe place, somewhere that they wouldn’t be in constant danger. They started off at the pharmacy, loading all the supplies into the SUV and killing any walker that tried to get in their way. Once all the medical supplies were safe, they moved onto the supermarket. They separated at that point; Bill off on his own, Stan with Mike and Richie with Bev.

“Did you see the look they gave me when you told them my name?” Richie asked, the thought having been bugging him for the majority of the day. Bev nodded her head. “What do you think it meant?”

Bev shrugged, “I don’t know, but I’m sure when we get back to their camp, we’ll find out.” She smiled and squeezed his shoulder. “They look really nice and friendly Rich, let’s trust them okay? If their place doesn’t seem safe, then we’ll leave and keep walking. Deal?”

Richie sighed and nodded his head, shoving a few packets of instant noodles into the trolley, a food he used to be obsessed with when he was back in college. There were many nights he and Eddie spent eating that stuff as they had no money for anything else. “Deal, you really have a way with words, Marsh.”

“Of course I do. I need to be quick on the brain with you and Stan around.” Bev laughed and Richie hip-bumped her before heading back to the main door where everyone else had gathered. “Did you guys find all the stuff you needed to get?” she asked them and they all nodded, motioning to their filled up trolleys. 

“You have no idea how many amazing meals Steve and Robin can make with all this stuff. El is going to be so happy we managed to get the beans too...she’s been craving them for so long.” Mike laughed. “El is our lovely lady who is expecting twins, as we discovered last night. She is one of our main priorities right now.”

As they packed the stuff into the SUV, Richie noticed both Mike and Bill staring at him a few times, but he ignored it, just like Bev had asked him to. He wanted to give them a chance, to give this safe place a chance. They needed a fresh start, and maybe this could be it. 

They all piled into the car and Mike drove away from the town, Richie couldn’t help but wonder what lay in wait for them at this new camp. 

* * * * *

Eddie had just finished changing the fluid drip in Dustin when he heard the commotion outside that Bill and Mike had returned. He didn’t rush to see what was going on, as he knew they’d be bringing the medical supplies to him sooner or later. He just hoped they’d managed to get a hold of the dressing and clean needles that he had asked for, as well as the equipment in case El needed an emergency cesarean. 

Footsteps echoed down the hall and Bill through himself into the room, grinning at Eddie as though he had grown another head. “Eddie, fuck, Eddie you need to come with me right this second. He wrapped a hand around Eddie’s wrist, tugging him to the door but Eddie stopped him. 

“Bill, hold on a second. I have to check on Dustin before I go anywhere,” Eddie scolded and moved back to Dustin’s bedside, checking over his vitals once more.”Okay, now what did you have to show me that’s so important?”

Bill just grinned once more and moved behind Eddie, pushing him towards the exit, “You have to  _ see _ . I can’t just tell you. It’ll ruin the whole surprise thing!” The mention of surprise made Eddie roll his eyes. He hated surprises and Bill knew that. 

When they got outside, there was a little crowd gathered around the SUV that Bill and Mike had gone on their run in. The closer he got, Eddie noticed two people, a girl and a man, that he had never seen before and they were watching him with curious eyes. “Bill what the hell are you doing? You know that I can walk over here on my own right? I’m not incompetant!”

Suddenly, the crowd that was surrounding the SUV broke apart and Eddie got a look at who they had been gathered around. As the new man looked up, Eddie’s whole body seemed to shut down for a second, as he there was no way he was seeing who he was really seeing. Tears filled into Eddie’s eyes and he covered his mouth with his hand, a choked sob making it out of his throat. 

There was no way that Richie Tozier was standing three feet away from him, looking just like he did the last time he saw him...maybe a little bit scruffier and a little older. 

“Eds?” Richie breathed, his eyes wide as he took a careful step forward. Eddie could see that his hands were shaking and he copied Richie’s movements, taking a step towards him also. “Eds is that...really you?” He asked. 

Another step and then another, and another until they were both standing directly in front of one another, the toes of their shoes touching. Carefully, holding his breath, Eddie reached a hand up to touch Richie’s cheek, trying to confirm that he was really there and not a figment of his imagination. As skin touched skin, Eddie gasped, breaking out into a sob. 

“Richie, oh my god, Richie!” Eddie practically screamed before throwing himself into Richie’s arms, burying his head into Richie’s neck as Richie’s arms circled Eddie’s waist and pulled them flush together tightly. Both of them were sobbing into each other, unbelieving that this moment was actually real. “Y-You’re a-alive!”

“I’m alive?” Richie choked out, pulling back so he could look into Eddie’s eyes once again. Eddie’s stomach fluttered. “ _ You’re _ alive!” 

Unable to help himself, Eddie pushed up on his toes, pressing his lips to Richie’s in a deep kiss, a kiss he had been craving for three years. A kiss he never thought he would ever get to have again. He savoured the moment as best as he could, but he was reminded that not only did he need to breathe, but they also had an audience. They pulled back from one another and Eddie lifted a hand up to run over Richie’s scruff. 

“You have a beard,” Eddie giggled, choking up as more tears spilled down his cheeks. “I- It actually suits you...fuck I never thought I’d ever think you’d look good with a beard but...but you do.”

Richie just laughed wetly and held Eddie close again, laughing into his neck, “You’re just saying that because you thought I was dead. Give it a week and you’ll be begging me to shave.” Eddie couldn’t help but shake his head and pull Richie into another desperate kiss. He didn’t think he would ever get tired of kissing Richie now, not when he finally had him back. 

The whole thing was emotionally draining, and Eddie could feel himself falling asleep in Richie’s arms. Yet he knew he couldn’t, so he stepped back, only a little bit and reached under his shirt to pull out his ring that was around the chain. Richie’s eyes widened as he slipped it off and held it between his thumb and forefinger. “Even though I thought you were dead...I never could get rid of it. It hurt to much to wear so I...I kept it close to my heart.”

Fresh tears filled Richie’s eyes as he carefully took the ring from Eddie’s fingers and moved to get down on one knee in front of all of Eddie’s new family, and Richie’s new family too. Soon they would all be family, ready to create a new world for themselves together. Right then though, Eddie just wanted to live in the moment. “Eddie Kaspbrak...will you marry me?” Richie asked, smiling wide with pure love in his eyes. 

In a moment, they would all move inside and explanations would be given. Eddie would introduce Richie to everyone and Richie would introduce Eddie to his two companions. They would retire to Eddie’s room and fall asleep in one another’s arms for the first time in three years, safe and in love. 

Eddie only had one thing to say in that moment though as Richie slipped the engagement ring back onto his finger where it belonged...and that was, “Yes. Yes of course I will.”


End file.
